But They're Locked!
by galaxysong9
Summary: Just how does one leave flowers in a locked locker in a locked room? READ THIS TO FIND OUT! Hyouteicentric. Timed writing exercise.


Time: 46 minutes

Character/Theme: AtobexSakaki/Roses

Disclaimer: Tenisu no Ohjisama, Konomi Takeshi, Jump Weekly. The American Shonen Jump translation is terrible and you shouldn't read it.

Atobe was used to getting random presents. He was, after all, the great Atobe-sama: gorgeous, fabulous, wonderful tennis player, wealthy, witty, famous... shall I go on?

So it wasn't unusual to find a rose in his tennis locker.

Wait. That's not right.

It was _very_ unusual to find a rose in his tennis locker. There are a few reasons why this is so.

Firstly, they're LOCKERS. The nature of lockers being that they are LOCKED. Was this secret admirer an experienced picklock? Did they have some sort of skill that allowed them to deposit flowers without actually opening the locker? That didn't make sense.

Secondly, the Hyoutei tennis club locker room had a very special, private, Regulars-Only section. This was, in fact, where his locked locker was. So not only was this admirer an experienced picklock, they were also great at sneaking around and into a (also LOCKED) private room.

Atobe was beginning to feel less flattered and more... creeped out. He loved his hordes of screaming fans, but knowing that one was a sneak thief-picklock who could enter the private club room and place roses (which, admittedly, could have many different meanings – Atobe wasn't well-versed in the secret language of flowers, but these probably meant eternal-stalker love) in a locked locker, without anyone knowing.

The other option was that it was actually one of his teammates who had done this (narrowing the options to seven others), but that wasn't even worth dwelling on. It wasn't very possible, either, because Atobe only left his locker unattended and unlocked after everyone had left (unless they were staying for special training), because as captain he was required to make sure everything stayed safe and sound.

Which brought him to his third point – Atobe was a)the only person who knew his own personal combination to his locker (except kantoku of course, who had everyone's combination) and b)had a key to the Regulars' club room (except, again, kantoku). It remained unlocked during practice, but the non-Regulars were always working somewhere on-court and wouldn't have a chance to go into the locker room. Then they'd of course be roadblocked by a locked locker anyway.

Which led Atobe to one conclusion: he needed to stop thinking about it and just let it run its course. Eventually the stalker (he hoped it actually wasn't a stalker, because they were always messy and unpleasant to deal with) would realize Atobe did not return their affection and give up. Dwelling too much on these kinds of things wasn't good for the mind.

It wasn't until the next practice that Atobe was forced again to contemplate the matter. He found another rose (which he was expecting – it hadn't been long enough for them to stop), but he didn't manage to put it away fast enough.

"Oi, Atobe! What's that?" It was, of course, their nosy little acrobatic pet.

"Nothing, Mukahi. Just another confession from an admirer, although" Atobe grinned smugly, "I doubt you get many of those."

"So sentimental, Atobe?" Oshitari looked over his glasses at him. "Carrying it around all day, I mean. Perhaps... you've found someone you love yourself?"

"Atobe? Never! He only loves himself that much!" There was a round of appreciative laughter.

"How do you know, an? Maybe I have found someone." Atobe inwardly laughed as Mukahi tucked the information neatly into a pocket of his brain, ready to spread to the rest of the school; his intentions were so obvious.

The chances of Atobe falling in love were slim, anyway. There was nobody he really liked romantically (except maybe that hunky Sanada from Rikkaidai... but he has nothing to do with this).

"So, Atobe, really, what are you doing with that rose?" Oshitari leaned over and smelled it. "You do know that lavender signifies 'sublime desire', na?"

So Oshitari knew the Secret Language of Roses. He probably should've expected that.

"Actually, I think those look more like Sakaki-sensei's scarf. Kind of a light pinkish purple," Shishido added his own two cents.

"Don't be silly, Shishido. Light pink means hatred. What kind of a person would express hatred with roses? I'm going with sublime desire, myself."

"What kind of a lameass gay tennis club are we, spending time discussing the Secret Language of Roses after practice?" Kabaji would've said, if he had any free will. Instead, he picked up Atobe's tennis bag and stood by the door, signifying, in the Secret Language of Kabaji, that they should leave before he was late to dinner. Again.

"You can stay here and discuss flowers if you wish, but I have a life, and a full and important schedule. Kabaji!" He snapped his fingers.

"Usu." And we see the relationship of master-servant begin to slowly reverse itself, as Kabaji begins to subliminally control Atobe. What a tricky bastard.

"I need to discuss matters of domestic security" domestic being Hyoutei as opposed to Japan, "with sensei. You may leave, Kabaji."

"Usu."

And one by one the rest of the club members began to leave, until Atobe was left alone in the club room with its lovely leopard-spotted throw pillows (he was personally responsible for the décor). After tidying up the last of his affects, he walked to Sakaki's office and knocked.

"Come in."

"I'm terribly sorry to trouble you, kantoku, but I'd like to ask you something."

"Yes?"

"Is there a problem with the locks in the Regulars' club room? Someone seems to be getting into the locked room and into my locked locker without my unlocking it."

"Have any of your valuables gone missing?"

"Actually, sensei, they seem to be leaving things in my locker as opposed to stealing them."

"Is it some kind of a prank? What kind of things?"

"Roses."

"Roses? What colour are they?"

That was an unusual follow-up question, but Atobe supposed that Sakaki-sensei _also_ knew the Secret Language of Roses. "Purply ones."

"Oh? Desire?"

"So I have been told." He moved instinctively closer to the door. Sakaki was rubbing his scarf in a way that made Atobe feel extremely uncomfortable. "Actually, sensei, I think I can take care of this by myself."

"Then why did you come for my advice?"

"I thought that something might be done to the locks. But obviously I was wrong." There. That was definitely the door handle.

"I don't think that's why. I think I know the real answer." Sakaki had stood up and was now walking slowly closer to Atobe.

"Actually, I think that was it. Everything's fine. Thank you!" And Atobe set a new record for time from Sensei's Office to Ride Home.

The next day the rose was red, instead of pink, and Oshitari cheerfully commented on how that represented 'fiery passion' and inquired in any progression of the relationship. Atobe said nothing, but had his lock replaced with an exact duplicate.

And that was the end of that.

galaxysong9

((Yes, Hyoutei has leopard throw pillows. And all the Secret Language of Roses info I got from here: http/flowers. rose-language.html with no spaces of course. Kantoku means coach or advisor, and it's how Hyoutei refers to Sakaki. I forgot how everyone else calls... everyone else, please forgive me for that.))


End file.
